Thursday, October 30

"NOAA's Fisheries Service will increase its protection of threatened elkhorn and staghorn corals in Florida, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands through a new rule to prohibit activities that result in death or harm to either species. The new regulations take effect on Nov. 21." - excerpt from this National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) article.

Thursday, October 23

"Nineteen coastal states face tough decisions involving energy and the environment -- whether or not to allow offshore drilling for oil and natural gas. Why? Because a 26-year federal ban on most offshore drilling was allowed to expire last month. So states along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts will get a bigger say on new drilling projects." Daniel C. Vock reports for Stateline.org October 20, 2008. Story includes detailed maps of offshore tracts.

Monday, October 13

Much thanks to Matt Walker, Surfing Magazine's Senior Editor, for a great story that has and will inspire others to act locally. This story is not just for surfers, it reminds each individual that we are ultimately responsible for protecting what we love and need for our future. It tells each person that they themselves have to act, and not only that, Matt explains how we need to group together to actually make an impact. That all being said, here is that opening paragraph. I hope it fires you up to read the whole story and to act to protect.

"I have a dream. Actually, it's more of a nightmare. It's a vision of coastal communities filled with pavement but no parking. Where cultures founded on the idea of whole towns enjoying the beach together finally give way to walled seaside country clubs for the private few. Where surfers who don't own an oceanfront home can't reach the ocean. And where industry and development leaves America's waves so polluted that we finally stop trying. It's a vision I hope won't come true, but all signs show that, with time, it will. And it's all your fault." --Matt Walker, Senior Editor for Surfing Magazine

Wednesday, October 8

In the Second wave energy summit yesterday Chad Nelson and Jim Moriarty met with a group of utilities, financiers, technology companies and enviros. It was great for us to be “at the table” as this alternative energy form starts to break.

Wednesday, October 1

Sand Trap: Another storm, another round of beach erosion, another round of questions about renourishment.

Beach erosion — during Tropical Storm Fay — threatens homes in Vilano Beach. As Tropical Storm Fay danced around the coast this summer, making a record number of landfalls, it also did a number on Florida's beaches. The storm eroded sand from south Palm Beach and Lantana in Palm Beach County, as well as from south Ponte Vedra and Vilano beaches in St. Johns County. In the latter case, five homes are threatened by erosion. Just a week later, Hurricane Gustav ate into vulnerable beaches on Florida's Gulf shoreline: Alligator Point in Franklin County and St. Joseph's Peninsula.

All those areas are chronic hot spots for beach erosion, says Mike Barnett, chief of the Department of Environmental Protection's Bureau of Beaches and Coastal Systems, and all are candidates for beach-restoration projects. Statewide, about a dozen projects are scheduled for 2009, many involving maintenance of previously restored shorelines, also known as nourishment.

Renourishment sites are supposed to receive new sand every six to 10 years but may need it more frequently after heavy storm periods such as the current one. Much of the sand brought to Honeymoon Island in a $2-million project less than a year ago had washed away by the time Gustav finished its tour, for example.

The projects remain controversial, despite Florida's 50-year tradition of restoring eroded beaches. Some environmentalists and sportsmen oppose the renourishment efforts because they can harm — or even bury — reefs and sea life. Some see the expensive projects as unwise public subsidies for wealthy beachfront dwellers. "Many millions of dollars flow faster than sand through your toes," complains Karl Wickstrom, editor-in-chief at Florida Sportsman magazine and a critic of the projects.